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FYI - Marcucci Motorsports (Todd M.'s shop) is now stocking phenolic intake manifold spacers for all Miata applications. For more information click here.
You boosted/modified guys are always looking for a way to keep that intake charge a little cooler - here's another little bit of help! :mrgreen:
I don't get it... what the hell is it exactly and how does it work?
And mind you, I read the link in the link and still don't undertand.
Think of it like a carb spacer. It is a plastic type gasket that goes between the head and intake and is supposed to keep the intake from absorbing heat from the head.
Chris
"I see!" said the blind man.
Chris got it.
3Bean - ever put your hand on the intake manifold right after an autox run or a track session (or even a trip down the tollway in this heat)? It's hot... and the hotter the intake manifold, the hotter the air that goes through the manifold.
The intake manifold absorbs a lot of that heat through direct contact with the head. This spacer is made out of an insulating material that drastically reduces the amount of heat conducted to the intake manifold, thereby reducing the temp of the manifold and - by extension - the temp of the intake air.
I have always wondered about that. Exactly how fast is the air going through the intake? At that speed, how much heat is transfered? I realize that every little bit counts, but how much difference does it make? This also goes for the intake tubes as well. Do different materials really make much difference? Since the air is traveling so quickly, the temperature that is ingested seems to be more important to me. Am I off base here?
I'm Interested .... if I can find any dyno graphs to back up the claim.
All that I can find is surface temp graphs. There are apparently several companies that make these, but none of them posts any solid dyno numbers.
Makes ya wonder doesn't it! :scratch:Quote:
Originally Posted by brock
How fast does the intake charge travel through an intercooler? :wink:Quote:
Originally Posted by Majik
You are right - the length of time that the air is in contact with the surface of the manifold will affect the amount of heat transferred. However, the delta T - or difference in temp between the intake charge and the surface of the manifold (or intercooler, for that matter) - also plays a role. The greater the delta T, the greater the rate of heat transfer. That manifold gets mighty hot.
brock - if you're lookig for data, you might want to contact marcucci directly. He can be reached at sales - at - marcuccimotorsports - dot - com.
Guys, this probably isn't the kind of product that is going to show huge dyno gains... unless you run your car on the dyno at WOT for 10 minutes and compare with and without the spacer. Again, it's designed to minimize power lost through heat conducted to the intake charge by the surface of the manifold. Unless you really get that manifold cooking on the dyno (like it would be at the end of back-to-back autocross runs or ten minutes into a track session), you likely won't see a difference on the rollers.Quote:
Originally Posted by POS Racing
Back in the day . . . drag racers used to pack their intakes with ice to cool it before each run. The Holley double pumper we ran on dirt needed to have the jets changed if the ambient temperature changed by more than a few degrees.
Cold air = dense air = more air to mix with the fuel.
Ever notice how your car seems to run better on a cool morning than a hot afternoon? :thumrigh:
Ok, Ill buy the intercooler deal, although the surface area is much greater, and also the delta T is big also, just in the opposite direction. I was mainly asking about parts like intake pipes, made of different materials. As for the manifold, the air tends to slow down there, since it has gone through the TB and now is tumbling into the head. I could see this product helping because of that.Quote:
Originally Posted by altiain
I have my engine torn apart right now, and from what I can remember it appears that the stock gasket on my 97 has VERY little to NO metal in it at all. I'll verify that when I get home tonight.
After reading this, here's my dumb question #34928...
How dramatic of a difference would you see with an intercooled non-FI car? I realize the cost of the intercooler would probably be a waste without FI, but... just curious.
Let's buy one and try it on the exhaust side...............Yuk Yuk.....oui gui
HELP! I'm melting........ :rolleyes:
Mark52, I didnt know you added one of these. How do you like it so far? :sunny:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave04
It wouldnt help any. When you compress air, it heats the air, the intercooler tries to get the air back to ambient temps. If you are not FI, then you are not heating the intake therefore dont need it.
Chris
If I remember correctly, Todd measured several degrees in intake temp drop when using these. Now that might be in conjunction with bypassing the coolant from the throttle body, I'm not sure.
The intake manifold still gets hotter than the incoming air because it is attatched to the head. Therefore the spacer, if it cools the intake manifold, should cool the air going into the engine. It has no bearing on FI or not. Now since the air is even warmer because of FI it might help more.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kags1969
Instead of saying that the spacer would cool the air, perhaps we should state that the spacer keeps the incoming air from getting hot(ter) than it normally would going through a non-phenolic-spacer-ed manifold. Right?